App for EV • Control your car at your fingertips
2022
Electric car has never been this powerful
2022
⏱ 3 min
Control your car at your fingertips
Charge.hk is a comprehensive charging information portal designed for Hong Kong electric vehicle (EV) owners. With real-time charging information, you can find the nearest charging stations on the map, with all essential information about your journey, including the types and availability of all charging ports. Get firsthand information from over 100,000 EV users in Hong Kong. Together, we can build a stronger EV community.
The Tasks
My task is to design on solo an all-in-one EV app for Hong Kong users. This includes UI and UX design, logo, and branding design.
The four main functions of the app are:
- Electric vehicle control
- Charging station map
- Check-in and report the status of the charging station
- Reward coupon redemption
Flow map
After marketing research and user interviews, with the limitations on the project timeline, the flow map visually presents the app's functions and information to make sure all bases are covered and to provide means of communication with my boss and product manager.
A day in the life
A typical working day routine of an EV driver can be simplified as follows:
- Control: Power on and set the car.
- Map and forum: Search for the availability of charging stations near your office and get real-time information, then use shortcuts to get navigation on external maps.
- Check-in: Park, charge, and report the charger status within the charging station.
- Timer: Set a timer to remind you of the finishing time to get back your car from the charging station.
- Check-out: Unplug and update the charger status within the charging station.
- Reward: Redeem coupons from check-in and reporting rewards.
Prototype
Charge.hk is my first full iOS app design, and I found several points challenging.
How can the control be made intuitive so that the driver is clearly shown the status of the on and off switches to ensure driving safety? How can the design of the on and off switches be improved together with the indication of their status on the control page? How can we incentivize community members to report their charging status?
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→ The control switch, message box of the new status, and detail controls. I considered the priority of functions with the user journey to arrange and categorize the order of functions. I try to put them in an easily skimmable order and make sure the items were familiar with the existing apps on the market.
→ The map pins come in 3 colors: supercharger, quick charger, and standard charger. The total and the available number of charging ports are indicated in 2 columns. You'll see a star on the number to distinguish user reports from real-time data.
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→ User-generated data is one of the main features of the app which enables EV drivers to share and report the current status of the charging spots where they parked their cars, then get rewarded with coupons. I try to reduce the cognitive load and limit the interaction time for the check-in and report process, so it does not discourage users from contributing to efforts regarding psychology. I also try to make the app as aesthetically pleasing as possible to keep users invested in the app and the community.
(Recently discontinued) Download on App Store